Last month, I sent my Tissot PR50 Atollo for a repair. The hands have stopped moving (even though the battery was only changed few months back), and the face plate has magically rotated. Everytime I look at the time, I’ll have to tilt my head to the side to get a right sense of time.

Recently, the shop came back to me with devastating news: The watch has been out of production for centuries, and there are no more replacement parts. Guess it has come of age. Constant dropping of the watch might have contributed to its downfall too.

History lesson: I got this watch back in 1995, when I was 11 years old. At that point of time, I was back in Seoul for my aunt’s wedding. Her husband-to-be was this Japanese dude who’s gotta be at least 10+ years older than her, and this is the 1st time my mom’s side of the family was meeting him - 5 days before the wedding.

And I guess, in his attempts to appease us, he brought tonnes of gifts & offerings. This was when I got the watch (along with numerous other gifts such as food, clothes etc.). I liked him already. And that was the last I’ve seen of him since then. (They flew back to Tokyo right after the wedding.)

Anyway, that watch was brought back to Malaysia, deemed too “old” for Primary Year 5 me by my dad, who proceeded to wear it, with the excuse of taking care of it. Until year 2000, when I decided to reclaim what was rightly mine, and put on the bracer of authority.

All in all, I had the watch for a whopping 14 years. It has been through thick & thin, ups & downs, black & white with me. I took me through my SPM, uni years, & my 1st 2 years of working life.

That’s that on my watch. Looks like I’ll be looking for one these coming weeks.

OR.

If all my friends decide to be real nice and start pooling RM10 per day until October 4th, you’ll have RM1.1k, which can get me a pretty decent Tissot. (Yes, I’m a brand loyalist. Tissot hasn’t disappointed me just yet.)

Think about it. A decent watch will help me be on time for all my appointments with you guys, which you can’t live with.

2008 has been an exciting, interesting & challenging journey for me personally.

So, in no particular order, here’s what’s happened, what provoked my thoughts, or even what mattered to me in 2008:

1. Witnessed Switchfoot Live
They’ve got to be one of the best live performances I’ve ever watched. Unforgettable.

2. Released a CD
One off The List. A major one I would say.

3. Realised Life is One Big Drama
Emotional roller coaster/Non returning of miss calls & SMSes period. Ok, it wasn’t that bad. But things that happen do make you think long & hard about stuff, especially if it concerns you.

4. Got Chased by the Cops
Recap

5. Started The List
Things to do before I die. Gotta complete it soon!

6. Did the Big Mac Chant
Recap

7. Attended a Great Camp
Jump 1st, fear later.

8. Visited Indonesia for Missions, then Holiday
Seriously, Lake Toba is a place worth visiting at least once a lifetime.

9. Acquired Jane
Jane is currently my beloved 6 stringed beauty. She might not be the best sounding, or the best looking, but, she’s still my one and only Jane.

10. Watched 3 Fantastic Movies
Juno

Across the Universe

Once

Alright, is there anymore to this list?

A toast, to 2009. May it be even more unpredictably exciting, as how life is meant to be.

Is it ok to say that I’m so proud of the juniors I have back in Uni?

Sorry I couldn’t be there, but I’m sure it was ROCKIN’.

Link

There was once where I didn’t know what it was like to play for a wedding - Especially someone’s wedding march.

A wedding happens only once in a lifetime (usually, for normal God fearing Christians), and hence, you wouldn’t want to screw up their wedding march.

What’s worse than that? Screwing up your good friend’s sister’s wedding march (Actually, she’s a friend too. :P)

The couple will hate me for life!

10 years down the road, during my wedding march (if I have one), they’ll stand up, and most likely ruin it by saying things like:

“Remember what you did on OUR wedding?” *Holds big huge python in hand, ready to throw it to the crowd.

or

“You! You don’t love her!”

or kidnapping the wedding band on that day, and replacing them with Foo Fighters.

Then again, I wouldn’t mind them being my wedding band.

So, to cut a long story short, all went well, I guess. I didn’t screw up, nor go all Maksim at the reception.

Only one thing - Up ’til this day, I can’t find a tie that matches that shirt!

My grandfather just left this afternoon.

I believe he’s in a better place right now, smiling down on us, hoping for us to do what’s right with our lives.

We’ll meet again someday, and we’ll get to know each other better over a cup of green tea.

Season 3 is weird.

You have some of the weirdest, badly animated episodes. You have an Autobot Leader who can’t seem to grasp the gravity of a situation, especially dire ones, and you have a Decepticon Leader who is just crazy with the tendency to whack the crap out of his most loyal subordinates.

Then again, there are episodes that are worthy of mention. You’ve got uber cool Second-in-Commands, that have equally cool vehicular forms for both Autobot & Decepticon. (I especially like Cyclonus’ plane mode.)

And this post was brought to you purely out of feeding my inner child’s desire.

FYI, due to complaints from my Cell Group members of not featuring them enough here, you guys are finally being featured!

This is quite an old pic, when I was still in my early 23s.

On this day, many many years back:

Some (though not many) famous people were born.
Many people died.
Some famous events happened.
And, some holidays were observed.

Births:
Anne Rice - Writer
Rachael Leigh Cook - Actress
Chris Lowe - Musician, Pet Shop Boys
Mauro Camoranesi - Italian/Argentinian soccer player
Tomáš Rosický - Czech soccer player

Deaths:
Rembrandt - Dutch painter
Catherine Booth - Mother of the Salvation Army
Janis Joplin - American Singer
Secretariat - American race horse

Events:
1927 - Gutzon Borglum begins sculpting Mt. Rushmore.
1931 - Debut appearance of the “Dick Tracy” comic strip, created by cartoonist Chester Gould.
1950 - Snoopy’s first appearance.
1957 - Launch of Sputnik I, the first artificial satellite to orbit the Earth.
1985 - Free Software Foundation is founded in Massachusetts, USA.
1993 - The events portrayed in the movie and book Black Hawk Down (a military insurgency in Somalia) occurred.

Holidays:
Lesotho - Independence Day (from Britain, 1966).
World Animal Day
National Cinnamon Bun Day (since 1999 in Sweden)

Nothing much exciting, except for World Animal Day, and of course, National Cinnamon Bun Day.

23 yo!